As blood stock shortage crisis continues, less than half of Brits know their blood type, says expert

The shortage of blood stocks, particularly group O red cells, is still acute. Now new research has revealed that less than half of us know what our own blood group is, despite this being vital knowledge in an emergency. A leading expert says a simple test can help save lives.

The NHS is continuing to appeal for people with O-type blood to donate, after it declared an Amber alert for group O red cells, positive and negative, last week. The Amber alert means shortages are impacting on clinical activities. It follows a drop in blood donations and a cyber attack on one of the NHS’ key blood-testing partners.

O negative blood is often called the ‘universal blood type’, because it is safe for all patients to receive in a transfusion when the patient's blood type is unknown.

Worryingly, recent research has revealed that less than 50% of Brits know their own A B O blood group. A leading testing expert says knowing your blood group is very important, as receiving blood from the wrong group can be life-threatening.

Dr Avinash Hari Narayanan (MBChB), Clinical Lead at London Medical Laboratory, says: ‘Knowing what blood type you are is vital. For example, if a group A person receives blood from a group B donor, then the giver’s anti-A antibodies will attack the receiver’s group A cells. This is why group B blood must never be given to someone who has group A blood and vice versa, to ensure that donors and recipients are a match when blood is transfused.

‘Given the importance of knowing your blood group, it is surprising and concerning that our recent analysis of the latest research by groups such as Cardiomyopathy UK has revealed less than half of us can name their own blood type.

‘Learning the ABC, or rather ABO, of blood types is simple but could save your life. There are four main blood groups: A, B, AB and O. Your blood groups are determined by the genes you inherit from your parents.

‘Additionally, each group will either be positive or negative. For example, you may be A positive or A negative. Whether you are positive or negative is determined by the presence of the rhesus D (RhD) antigen.

‘The most common blood group in the UK is O positive, with around 36% of us in this group. Conversely, only 1% of us are AB negative, making it the least common.

‘As the current blood shortage highlights, in most cases O negative can safely be given to anyone. That’s why it is so concerning that, although we should have six days-worth of O negative stocks, we are currently down to just 2.9 days. It's often used in medical emergencies when the blood type is not immediately known. It's safe for most recipients because it does not have any A, B or RhD antigens on the surface of the cells and is compatible with every other ABO and RhD blood group. However, this is not an ideal solution.

‘Whether our blood group is positive or negative can be of major importance in terms of pregnancies. Pregnant women are always tested to see what blood type they are. That’s because, for example, if the mother is RhD negative, but the child has inherited RhD positive blood from the father, this can cause complications if left untreated.

‘Currently, only around one in 25 UK adults are blood donors, even though most people are able to give blood. As you can imagine, in an ideal world many more people would be donors, particularly in the case of rarer groups such as AB negative, AB positive (which applies to only 2% of the UK population) and B negative (again only 2%).

‘Anyone aged between 17 and 65 who is fit and healthy and weighs between 50kg (7 stone 12lb) and 158kg (25 stone) can be a blood donor. People older than 65 may be able to continue to give blood providing they have done so previously. Men can give blood every 12 weeks and women can give blood every 16 weeks. This is because men generally have higher iron levels than women.

‘Revolutionary new blood tests introduced in the last few years mean people also have swift access to a vast array of information about their own health through a simple finger-prick test, which can even be taken in their own home.

‘For example, London Medical Laboratory’s General Health Profile blood test monitors seven key areas of health. It includes muscle and bone profile, liver & kidney function, risk of diabetes (by checking levels of HbA1c), cholesterol levels, iron levels and even the risk of gout.

‘London Medical Laboratory’s General Health Profile blood test can be taken at home through the post, or at one of the many drop-in clinics that offer these tests across London and nationwide in over 120 selected pharmacies and health stores. For full details, see: https://www.londonmedicallaboratory.com/product/general-health